Delineating the crossroads of gender-class-caste in Trasi’s The Colour of Our Sky

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a pervading issue that stretches beyond the geographical, cultural, and socio-economic dimensions. However, its effects and configuration are often figured by conjoining factors such as-race, class, caste and gender, making the experience of violence more perplexing for marginalised groups. Intersectionality as a concept is introduced by Kimberle Crenshaw in 1989 at the University of Chicago. Crenshaw’s model provides a basic ground of understanding how multiple identities strikes one another and aggravate the vulnerability of an individual making one prone to gender-based violence. Critical understanding of Gender-based violence from the lens of intersectionality will enable one to address the complex ways in which race, class, caste, and other identities amplifies vulnerabilities. Policies and interventions must consider these intersecting factors to effectively combat GBV and to ensure wholesome support for all victims, particularly those from marginalised communities. The paper aims at examining the different social categories, including race, class, caste and gender and their intersection to create distinct experience of violence for women and non-binary individuals (breaking away from traditional gender norms). The researcher attempts to read the theory of intersectionality and marginalization through the novel of Amita Trasi named “The Colour of Our Sky”. The work brings out gender-based violence practiced against one of the protagonists named Mukta in the story. Mukta’s marginalisation and oppression is due to the factors including her social status, financial position, her caste and cultural background leading her journey from the family of temple workers to the trafficking world of metropolitan.

Keywords: Gender, Violence, Women, Intersectionality, Marginalization